Dracothar
Dracothar (Sub-Race) by T.A. Saunders ©2010 v1.0 Racial Summary Average Height: 13′ (male), 11’5″ (female). Average Weight: 550lbs (male), 420lbs (female). Description: Most will have the skin tone of their humanoid parents, with scales appearing in random places throughout the body, most notably at the cheekbones, chest, hands and feet. These scales will range from gold to dark copper if the dragon mother was a Xinntu dragon or silver to dark blue if the mother was a Xannti dragon. Eyes will also be humanoid in shape, but favor appropriate draconic colorings. Languages Spoken: Draconic and Common Racial Age Limit: Roughly 250 to 300 years. Racial Nicknames: Cursed Spawn, Aberration, Monster. NOTE: Dracothar and Dragonoids will always come from either Human, Shei, Asyndi or Xalayi stock. No other combinations, including those with halfbreed sub-races are possible. Crossbreeding Zish with Dragons produces a monstrous being known only as Ziyare, and are exceedingly rare. Appearance Dracothar differ wildly in appearance, mostly because of their strange mixture of parenting. By all rights, Dracothar should not exist, yet when Tashalasheeri first discovered the secret of Draconic shapeshifting, a whole new realm of possibility opened up. Because of the way the Dracothar develops, (they are hatched in the three months it takes for a normal Dragon egg to hatch) they favor more of their Draconic mother than their humanoid father. While this confers upon them amazing strength and durability, the development of the mind suffers greatly and insanity of some kind is almost certain. Almost all Dracothar will have wings, but not all do; some will have two heads, four arms and it is even possible for one head to be a different scale color than the other head. Other mutations include a cyclopean eye (on one or both heads if born with two), an extra tail, over-sized wings, horns (possibly a singular, unicorn-like horn) or excessive/fewer digits than normal. There are some instances of Prismatic Dracothar, but very few of these survive the first few weeks of birth due to some wild genetic defect. Those that have, are both quite powerful and quite mad. Racial Abilities and Limitations Racial Abilities Power of Lineage: Dracothar have superhuman strength on par with Voraath and can execute feats of strength along the same vein. This also allows the Dracothar to utilize a Breath Weapon that corresponds with his or her clan. Xinntu use a Cone of Flame, Xannti use Cone of Frost three times per day. The Cone of Flame will ignite enemies for 1d4 and incinerate all flammable materials in the 60′ area. while the Cone of Frost will freeze all targets for 1d4 rounds within the 60′ area, shattering simple glass items. (+15% to melee attack, +45% to feat of strength checks, Breath Weapon use 3 times per day). Heightened Rage: Dracothar are the embodiment of the blunt instrument mentality that exists in their Draconic kin. Because of this they attack with greater ferocity and tenacity. (One extra melee or ranged attack per round). Draconic Recovery: Dracothar are able to slowly regenerate damage over time, including severed limbs. This process is not instantaneous and it can take a few days to recover a leg, tail or wings, a day to recover arms and less to recover fingers. Damage from Bane weapons does not regenerate and must be magically healed. (Regeneration possible, Bane weapon damage does not regenerate). Elemental Recovery: When a Dracothar is exposed to their attuned element (a Dracothar of Xinntu parenting is attuned to fire and one of Xannti element is attuned to Ice), they are able to heal themselves at twice the normal rate, atop of any possible regeneration they have from Draconic Recovery. (-15% to overall armor rating when within the attuned element. Heightened regeneration when within that element). Racial Weaknesses Curse of Lineage: Dracothar are susceptible to Bane Weapons that would otherwise effect dragons. Such weapons strike for half the additional effectiveness they would against ordinary dragons. It is worth mentioning that while the above is true, such weapons are still very painful for a Dracothar to experience! Furthermore, they have an 80% chance to be born with some major form of insanity. Unavailable Classes Special: Dracothar can be NO other class, other than Berserker, Warrior or Knight (only exceptional Dracothar can manage to become Knights, most of those are Reavers. Additionally, Dracothar cannot become Samurai). Dracothar lack the subtly or the intellectual acumen to pursue other classes, but certainly have enough contempt and hatred to manage any fighting-oriented career. Lore Hatred from Love: The Dracothar Tashalasheeri was the start of it all. With the birth of the abomination, Aryxiar came the knowledge that inter-breeding between Dragon and mortal was possible…even successful to a point. Setting out to create an abomination was never Tasha’s intention; her intense love for Hazaad had forced her to explore the depths of Draconic power and become the first Astral Wyrm to successfully shapeshift not with magic, but with sheer force of will. It was the only way Tasha could fool the other Wyrms and other Asyndi into believing she was actually an Asyndi, rather than a Dragon hidden by magic. But the advantages of her disguise became plainly obvious quickly and a coupling that was never meant to happen came to pass. The knowledge of Draconic Shapeshifting has survived the ages and with it the knowledge that offspring can be produced while in humanoid form. Because Draconic Shapeshifting is an alteration of self, rather than a sorcerously imposed alteration, the genetic truth of the dragon is preserved. Because of this, the ability to create an offspring is fostered, though depending on the parents the results can be far different. When the mother is a dragon and the father is a humanoid, the result is a Dracothar. It is important to make this distinction because a Dracothar is genetically only remotely similar to the much smaller and much more level-headed Dragonoid. Dracothar are hatched from the egg of their draconic mother and take three months to hatch, like a normal dragon egg and just like a normal Dragon clutch, there can be more than one Dracothar born, though most will die before they even hatch. This development time seems to address an issue of possible mental instability the Dracothar suffer, though so few Dracothar are ever born, it is difficult to make that determination accurately. There are also far more genetic mutations in in Dracothar, than Dragonoids as previously mentioned. Because of the greater Draconic influence, Dracothar are also cold-blooded, rather than warm-blooded as Dragonoids are; as such, they are often considered the true ‘Half-Dragons’ by Dragons, rather than Half-Humans, they refer to Dragonoids as often. Just with an alteration of parenting, drastic changes are made between the two sub-races, simply because neither was meant to exist in the world, hence there is a lack of genetic symmetry. Dracothar definitely got the short end of the stick in this regard; between their inclination to insanity and general dislike for the world around them, the Dracothar have an uphill battle if they ever care to be anything but a hated freak of nature. Some have overcome their short-comings under great adversity but these Dracothar number in the single digits in a sub-race that is thankfully quite small in population. With so few Dracothar in the world, they are considered a rarity (or an aberration depending on your viewpoint) and none presently hold any positions of power on Imarel, nor have they organized in any fashion to represent themselves as a people. This has further enshrouded them in mystique, fear and curiosity as a race. Dracothar generally do not take mates, though there have been a few instances of Dracothar mating with each other, humanoid mates are simply too fragile for their bestial desires. No Dracothar has ever successfully mated with a Dragon that anybody knows of, nor is it known whether such a coupling could conceive a viable offspring. The Life of a Dracothar It is somewhat rare that a Xinntu Dragon mother will tend Dracothar eggs, while in some cases the hybrid child is embraced, most often the mother leaves eggs someplace to rot or destroys them in a fit of disgust rather than take responsibility for creating an abomination. In Xinntu society, it is frowned upon to fall sway to one’s passions and to couple with a humanoid, especially when there are so few dragons left anywhere. However, the mother is expected to take care of the hatchlings, despite the fact few do. Most Xinntu Dracothar are the result of a moment of passion between a Xinntu in humanoid form and their chosen humanoid mate. Sometimes this humanoid male is a chosen mate, sometimes not. In the cases where the Dragon has mated herself to the humanoid male, s he may care for the eggs, if her mate is adamant on the matter. In cases where hatchlings are made due to a tryst between a Dragon and a humanoid male, the dragon will often disavow having any sort of dealing with the male at all and abandon the eggs if at all possible most times. With the legend of Tashalasheeri taught over and over again as a warning to unwary Dragons who might otherwise fall to passion, the heedless fear what the child may do to them if allowed to grow up and hence are likely to destroy or abandon the eggs, unless compelled by a mate or overwhelming compassion. In the most rare of circumstances where a Dracothar is born to a Dragonrider team, they are retired as a team and given a stipend so they may take care of and raise the hybrid child properly. These children are cared for as best as the parents are able and despite any deformities or madness they may be compelled by. These Dracothar never become Dragonriders themselves and often end up, at best Farwind city guards or similar lot in life. More often Dracothar hatched and reared by Dragonrider teams leave Farwind entirely and seek their fortunes elsewhere. Xannti Dragons consider their Dracothar born slaves and raise them with that belief. They are used to act as shock-troops, Conclave Guards and grunt laborers for building structures. Much with the case of the Van`Su, the Xannti Dracothar are not treated badly; they are simply expected to submit to the order of things and if they don’t, they’re eaten. It would not be the first Xannti mother who has eaten his own Dracothar child out of some willful outburst on the child’s part. This is perfectly acceptable behavior for the war-like Xannti, who prize strength and discipline over all things. Xannti Dracothars can come about as a result of a tryst between a female Dragon and a humanoid male slave s he finds particularly pleasing, but more commonly these Dracothar are bred into conquered populations. When they are hatched, the mother returns, then reveals her true form (the reaction differs greatly in humanoid males, though often it is with revulsion and horror). The father that claims the Dracothar child as his is given preferential treatment above other people of that conquered town or city in the way of wealth and comfort. The father becomes a sort of pet to the dragon and many times, after the oppression, starvation and suffering of war, this option is more often than not, taken up. Those fathers that reject the Xannti Dragon’s kindness are usually eaten on the spot. The child goes into the care of the Dragon’s personal slaves either way, who are either usually Humans or Van`Su. They tend to the child and ensure that he or she is properly educated in the ways of fighting and war so when the day comes for them to take their place in Xannti society, they are properly prepared. Despite being slaves to their Dragon mothers, Xannti Dracothar are fiercely loyal usually and take great relish in their position in life. Category:Races